As the saying goes, “The best defense is a good offense,” and that’s so applicable when it comes to engaged employees. It’s much easier to promote engagement than it is to win back employees who have already disengaged. Use these 8 Ways to Elevate Employee Engagement to avoid disengaged employees in your workplace.
1) MEASURE ENGAGEMENT
How enthusiastic are team members about their jobs and your company? How likely are they to recommend your company as a good place to work? Consider using asurvey to answer these and other questions related to team member engagement. This can provide a baseline for how your team members feel about working for you and can help identify areas for improvement. Additionally, consider conducting stay interviews in addition to exit interviews both will help identify potential improvement areas in team member satisfaction and engagement.
2) UNDERSTAND INDIVIDUAL MOTIVATORS AND STRENGTHS
Not all team members are motivated by the same thing. Some may be motivated by working in a team; others may be motivated by having greater autonomy. Supervisors should identify individual motivators and strengths and assign work that based on those individualized factors. Don't know what motivates your team members? Ask them!
3)PRAISE AND RECOGNIZE
Praise and recognition can go a long way in letting team members know the company values them. Praise is generally more informal and can be as simple as a “thank you” for a job well done. Recognition is a more public way of showing team members that they are valued. Why not share team member contributions at staff meetings, in newsletters or via email. Consider social media recognition platforms like Teamphoria.com!
4) REWARD!
Not only is it important to recognize outstanding performance, but it is also important to reward it. While rewards can include bonuses, they don’t have to be monetary. For example, consider giving a team member an extra day off or taking him or her out to lunch after completing a particularly challenging milestone.
5) ALIGN COMPANY GOALS
Team members should always be aware of the company's mission and goals. They should also know how their job affects those goals. Ensure individual goals help achieve department goals and department goals help achieve company goals. This helps show team members that what they do truly does affect the company’s success.
6) BUILD YOUR MIDDLE MANAGERS
Effective supervisors have the skills and experience to manage team member performance, as well as support and value their team members. Give supervisors the training they need to communicate openly and frequently, set clear expectations, and provide constructive and timely feedback.
7) MENTOR AND DEVELOP
By making team member development part of the company culture, you clearly communicate that your organization values team member growth and development. Consider a mentor program where senior managers are paired with a less experienced team member to offer career advice, share knowledge and experiences, listen to questions and concerns, and encourage career development. Cross-training or Job Sharing is another development initiative that can help promote team member engagement by providing team members with the opportunity to learn new skills and face new challenges. Millennials especially love learning new skills and facing new challenges!
Developing camaraderie is an important aspect as well as teambuilding activities that can be conducted at staff or department meetings. Launching an internal succession planning process is a great way to mentor and develop your team.
You can obtain Job Sharing and Succession Planning Toolkits when you GET THE National Management Training Week Toolkit.
8) ENSURE OPEN COMMUNICATION
Share the company's goals and business results with team members and celebrate successes. It is also important to encourage team member feedback and suggestions. Take their suggestions seriously and while you may not be able to act on all ideas ,ensure a process is in place to respond to each idea. If change does occur, as a result give credit where credit is due and consider rewards wherever possible.
Every job and every team member of your company is important to the success of an organization. By making team member engagement a priority of your culture, you will see returns on improved commitment, decreased turnover, and increased productivity– and you just might hear one of your team members say... “I love my job!”